Improvement in piston-packing



@met @Willa ntrd tatw vfor the break-joint, as: shown in iig.,1.

JOSEPH ANTHONY'AND THOMAS B. PU'Rv'Es,

' NEWYORK.

OF GREENBUSH,

Letters Patent No. 93,578, dated August 10, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN PISTN-PAcKING.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part f the same.

To all whom tt muy concern:

Be it known that we, JosnPH- ANTHONY and THOMAS B. Pnnvns, both of Greenbush, in the county ot' Rensselaer, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Construction of Piston-Packing for steam-engines; and we hereby declare that the following is a clear and exact description of its construction and operation, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,'and to the letters of reference marked thereoin Construction.

llie'pistons to which our improved packing is applied, may be constructed in many ways, though the one which we prefer as mostlcompletelyaccomplishing the object, isb'y the usev ofthe ordinary pistonrod A, piston-spider B, the liners O, al1 inside'm'ng D, an outside ring E, the opening or cut in which is covered by thc break-joint F, and lastly, the follower G.

The piston-rod, the spider, and the follower, are connected4 together in the ordinary way, as shown in the drawings. The inside ring is uncut, and is iinished of such a width that the follower shall bind it tightly in its place. lt is also so formed as to make room The 'outside ring is made slightly narrower than the inside ring, so that when the pistou is being propelledv along the cylinder, the steam acting therein may have ready access over its edge (on thesteam-side) and into the space provided between it andthe inside ring.

Tear cach edge of the outside ring we make a series of holes, H, shown by the dotted lines in iig. 1, to let steam out next to the inner surface ot' the'cylinder.

To more completely accomplish 'this purpose, 'we connect these vholes with vcach other externally, by means of grooves, I, passing completely around the ring, with the exceptionrof a short space each side of the cut or opening in the same, asshown-by the dotted lines in g. 1, and in cross-section in fig. 2.

To make sure that steam shall have free access to the holes andouter groove just described,rwe connect the said holes with each other internally by grooves, J, similar to those on the outside ofthe said ring, and form openings K, tig. 1, across them, extending from edge to edge of the ring thereof'.

The liners are used in the manner shown in fig. 1, to adjust the'piston in the centre of the cylinder, as occasion requires.

' Operation. The operation of our"improved packing is as follows: v On the admission of steam' against the piston, the outside ring thereof` is carried tightlyagainst the spider or the follower, as the case may be. y This movement ofthe ring allows steam to pass inward Vover its slack or Open edge, to the openings or space inside of it.

This steam forces the ring outagainst the inside of the cylinder, making it steam-tight. A portion of the steam at the same time passes through. the holes to the grooves on the outside .ofthe ring, where itcomes in contact withthe inner surface ofthe cylinder. Bythis means the minute cells or pores inthe rubbingsurfaces are ,iilled with steam, sothat the piston is continually moving over a thin stratum oriilmof nearly or quite the same density outside ofthe ring 'as vit is inside. v `This arrangement permits of a single fullwidth rng,'with no friction excepting the weight of parts, and at the same time running perfectly steamtight.

Hcretofore,.. self-actingv packing, so called, has had to be composed of one .or more narrow rings, to avoid great internal pressure. The consequence has been. that they have been expensive to make, vhave had insuicient bearing-surface, and have required too much power to overcome the friction inseparably connected with them.

Claim.

. lVitnesses:

Oris I. BATES, HENRY GOODRIOH. 

